If we're not careful animals like this won't be around for much longer.The focus of my project is the destruction and disappearance of coral reefs. Coral reefs are extremely diverse ecosystems that provide human kind with nourishment, flood protection, and boast the economy through tourism and the sale of fish. However, reefs are highly fragile to human impact, and eleven percent of coral reefs around the world have already disappeared. That number is expected to increase to 32% within the next sixty years. My research project will explain why coral reefs are important, why they are disappearing, and what can be done to stop this.
My first target audience group will be citizens of Vermont. Since Vermont has no coast, Vermonters probably do not consider the effects of climate change and human impact on the oceans as much as other ecosystems. In order to educate a Vermont population that has the ocean on its radar post-Irene, I will submit letters to the editor to newspapers around the state of Vermont.
My second target audience group is Champlain College students. Unless you are studying the environment in some way, many college students give little thought to the destruction of habitats so far from their daily lives. In order to reach this population I will use social media such as facebook, twitter, and this blog.
